Regenerative Living Course

permaculture and natural building

NOVEMBER / DECEMBER 2016

This is an innovative and unique course on how to start living regeneratively - using permaculture and natural building. In Part 1 you will learn the basics of permaculture design and apply it immediately in daily practical activities. In Part 2 you will enter the world of natural building for beginners. You can choose to attend one or both parts of the course and we will tailor activities to participants interests. Come and share in the long term experience of international teachers Alex Kruger (Permaculture Designer & Consultant) and Neil Smith (Natural Building legend), along with the professional team at La Loma Viva.

This course aims to provide people with many of the skills needed to live not only more sustainably but regeneratively! These essential skills can be applied in your own personal life and beyond - to design the life you want, to become more connected to the natural world and have a positive influence in your community and with your actions. Learn how to grow your own nutritious food, become more independent and self-reliant, build from natural materials, develop new abilities and become part of a global movement for change!

We will also bring in people care elements of permaculture, including cultural emergence and leadership training, nature awareness, mindfulness and applying ecological principles to designing your life. During your time with us you will enjoy amazing fresh organic food from our gardens, experience life on a permaculture farm, have fun in nature and be inspired by like minded people!

Making garden beds

Growing and propagating plants

pART 1: PERMACULTURE THEORY AND PRACTICAL WEEK

18-24 NOVEMBER 2016

During this week long course you will be introduced to Permaculture Design - its Principles, Ethics & Techniques and how it can be applied to your daily life - so that you can make the change to a more regenerative way of living - taking care of the earth in your daily activities. One of the objectives of Permaculture is to help you to "think like an ecosystem" and learn to build functional connections between the living systems of your life.

Each days theory sessions will be explored and implemented in practical activities, so that you can take home real hands on skills and experience "learning by doing". Practical activities may include; designing and planting a vegetable garden, building healthy soils (using indigenous micro-organisms etc), companion planting, implementing a food forest or wind shelter, learning about earthworks and rainwater harvesting techniques, plant propagation for greening and reforesting landscapes, composting techniques, working with chickens, seed saving, food preservation and much more! There will also be daily activities from the people side of Permaculture - connecting you to nature and engaging you in personal transformation.

Earth building

Natural building techniques

PART 2: NATURAL BUILDING FOR BEGINNERS 10 DAYS

25 NOVEMBER - 4 DECEMBER 2016

This is a wonderful opportunity to start learning about natural building and gain skills that you can put towards constructing simple elements in your home and garden designs or to use as a foundation course for creating larger projects in the future.

In these ten days you will be introduced to Natural Building techniques and methods, using different materials and how to work with them. We will carry out some projects for the farm - including building a compost toilet facility and outdoor showers. These are two very functional elements used in Permaculture design, which are handy to have for both private homes, as well as international development projects.

Many of the fundamental elements of Natural Building will be explored; including using adobe, building foundations, fitting a roof structure, choosing the right materials for your climate and using resources you have in your landscape. This is a great introduction to working with the earth and nature, to learn how to build in a relaxed environment, to get in there and really get your hands (and feet) dirty and have loads of fun rediscovering skills that are part of our human and cultural heritage.

THE TEACHERS

ALEX KRUGER

ALEX KRUGER TEACHING

Alex is a dynamite teacher and pioneer in the field of permaculture. She has been teaching permaculture courses for 20 years and has trained thousands of students. She studied at Fambidzanai Centre in Zimbabwe in 1993 and has been transmitting the joy of permaculture to others since then.

Alex is a prominent figure in the Permaculture movement in South Africa, where she has designed a wide range of regenerative systems - from urban gardens, eco-villages, farms, regional level action plans for marginalised communities and projects for NGO’s.

She has consulted on ecological restoration & land rehabilitation projects, spoken at many conferences & permaculture festivals and run innovative training programs in schools (such as SEED, an award winning non-profit group working in townships and impoverished areas). For the past 10 years Alex has been living and teaching at the Berg-en-Dal Permaculture Training Centre and Sustainable Dryland project in the semi-arid area of the Klein Karoo in South Africa. This is a 405 hectare, off-grid farm in a very challenging environment and provides the ideal testing ground for the effectiveness of permaculture systems.

Alex is experienced in teaching across cultures and shares her wisdom with lots of heart and positivity.

KAREN DE VRIES

Karen is the co-founder and project co-ordinator at La Loma Viva since 2009. She is involved in all aspects of creating and running a permaculture farm and retreat centre.

Karen has studied with teachers such as Penny Livingston (Hawaii, 2007), Bill Mollison and Geoff Lawton (Istanbul 2010) and with Alex Kruger (South Africa, 2009). In 2015 Karen completed the Training of Teachers course in the UK with renowned permaculture practitioners Rowe Morrow, Looby McNamara and Chris Evans. In 2016 Karen was able to participate on the first ever Cultural Emergence Leadership training with Looby McNamara and Jon Young (8 Shields), combining the social aspects of permaculture with nature connection.

As well as loving to get her hands in the earth and spend time in nature, Karen likes to promote the people care aspect of permaculture and “growing people”. She likes to create a space where people can experience the transformational power of permaculture in their own lives.

NEIL SMITH

NEIL SMITH BUILDING

Neil Smith has been working in permaculture and natural building since 2001. He trained with Etienne Bruwer, one of South Africa's leading Green Architects. He has worked with community-based training centres, non-profit building work, contract work and self-builds. Neil currently runs ´Natural Building´ courses in South Africa and works as a consultant, designer and project manager for building projects. His work also incorporates permaculture and water infrastructure designs. He is also involved with the Sustainable Built Environment Conference (SBE). Neil has built his own home and is focussed on the continued development of a homestead at Berg en Dal Ecovillage. www.berg-en-dal.co.zaNeil is a hands-on teacher and encourages all his students to just go out there and do it and find their way in confidence and technical detail.

- Full regenerative living course (17/18 days)

18 November - 4 december (16/17 Nights) 1000€

BOOKING FORM:

A 100€ deposit reserves your place, the balance should be paid by 1st Nov 2016. If you have any questions please email us on info(at)lalomaviva.com

Once we receive your booking form we will email you bank details to pay the deposit or full payment via bank transfer. Many Thanks

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Permaculture Practical Week

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CANCELLATION POLICY

For cancellations up until 30 days prior to the course starting date a full refund will be given (less 50€ administration fee) .

For cancellations from 29 to 8 days prior to the course, we will refund 50% of the total course fee.

Cancellations within 7 days or less before the course, we will need to charge the full course fee. This is also applicable for a no-show of a confirmed participant.

If you need to cancel up to one week before and there is a waiting list and your place can be taken by another person, then we will endeavor to refund your course fee minus the admin charge (less than 7 days before it is unlikely that your place can be taken by another)

Due to the fact that we try to keep costs as low as possible and normally are only covering expenses, one persons participation could mean the deciding factor as to whether a course goes ahead or not, thus last minute cancellations can not be refunded. If you are unable to attend you may transfer your place to another person.

In case of cancellation of the course by the workshop host - La Loma Viva - you will get a full refund of the course fees payed.

If a participant is not taking part of the whole course there will be no refund for the parts not attended. To apply the correct cancellation fee, the date of your booking will be used.